Local businesses are being warned by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) about the unscrupulous sales tactics of some internet domain name registration agents.

The OFT has received a number of complaints from businesses that have been cold-called by domain name registration agents attempting to pressure them into buying domain names the "addresses" by which companies are known on the internet.

Typically, the agents inform the business a third party is interested in if not on the brink of registering close variants of their name. A very short timescale is then offered for the business to pay to register these domain names with the agent before the third party steps in to secure them.

If businesses have doubts about the reliability of a domain name offer, the OFT recommends that they contact their internet service provider (ISP), their usual domain name registration agent, or their local Trading Standards service, who can advise on a course of action to take.

John Vickers, OFT chairman, said: "Businesses should be wary of cold callers putting pressure on them to buy domain names in haste.

"We have warned a number of domain name registration agents about their selling practices and will continue to crack down on any misleading claims."

Lesley Cowley, managing director of Nominet UK, the national registry for all .uk domain names, added: "Local businesses are particularly vulnerable to this kind of practice.

"We advise anyone who is approached in this way not to be coerced into accepting any unsolicited offers."